Currently, there is no automated way to transfer customer specific hardware information, such as a subscriber's mobile dialing number (“MDN”), geographic home location, Electronic Serial Number (“ESN”) personal calling minutes (such as personal calling minutes) remaining, expiration date of the calling minutes, etc., to the hardware of a new vehicle enrolled in a mobile vehicle communication system (“MVCS”) from the hardware of an old or previous vehicle in the MVCS. Subscribers are required to request a new telephone number and forfeit previous personal calling minutes when they purchase a new vehicle equipped with the same MVCS. Such transfers are labor intensive and time consuming, and often present considerable inconvenience to both the subscriber and the network operator.
Under some billing systems, only a single MDN may be associated with a ESN. Such an arrangement is convenient for billing purposes.
The present method advances the state of the art in mobile vehicle communication systems.